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Subject:
From:
David Eyre <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Discussion of Bee Biology <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Thu, 16 Nov 1995 16:01:06 -0500
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"Greg Holley wrote"
>I would like to know if progress is being made in breeding bees that are
>resistant to varroa.  Are any of the commercial queen breeders selling bees
>that have some resistance to varroa?
 
        Don't I wish we were breeding Varroa resistant bees!!  As somebody
said recently, mite resistance is the "Holy Grail" of bee breeding. There is
a lot of work being done on Varroa and Tracheal mite resistance here in
Ontario, and in Europe. In Ontario, Dr Tibor Szabo has been working on
hygienic bees, in the hope of finding or fixing a grooming gene. He has on
record bees which damage the legs of Varroa, to prevent them hanging onto
bees. I personally believe we won't achieve Varroa resistance until we can
splice the necessary genes from Apis Cerana, which is probably a long way off.
 
        With the onslaught of Varroa, Tracheal mite has been ignored, which
I think is very short sighted. We have proved some bees are extremely
susceptable to Tracheal mites, and cannot cope with any infestation. So, if
they are weakened by tracheal mites, and are virtually suffocating, now add
Varroa, they don't stand a chance! It's a bit like having a dose of double
Pneumonia and a Vampire bat on the back of your neck. A lot of hive losses
could have been prevented if we changed our approach. I think our first
approach should be to change stock by re-Queening to Tracheal resistance.
Then there isn't a hidden mite causing problems, now we can concentrate on
dealing with Varroa, not just by throwing chemicals around. Too much and we
will end up, as in Italy, with Varroa immune to Apistan. When that happens
we are really in trouble. There are alternatives, all we have to do is use
them, stuffing our head in the sand and ignoring change won't do it.
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   * David J. Eyre CEO    9, Progress Drive, Unit 2,     *
   * The Beeworks        Orillia, Ont, Canada, L3V 6H1 *
   * [log in to unmask]    (705) 326 7171           *
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